Memory devices are widely used in computers and other electronic devices to store data and other information. Some memory devices, such as flash memory devices, do not need power to maintain the information stored in the device.
A flash memory device usually makes use of a programming operation to store information, a read operation to retrieve the stored information, and an erase operation to clear some or all of the information in the device. Programming, read, and erase operations in a flash memory device usually involve applying different voltages to various components of the device.
Programming operations generally proceed according to a well-defined sequence of voltage application operations. However, sometimes programming operations fail, such as when the select gate voltage is applied in a manner that unintentionally turns off cells that have been selected for programming (e.g., due to an insufficient select gate voltage level when higher data line voltages are used in multi-level cells). Programming operations can also fail when non-selected cells are programmed unintentionally (e.g., due to select gate voltage leakage between selected cells and non-selected cells).